REVIEW: JBL Everest 710GA, Great Audio with A Smart Twist

JBL has recently released their JBL Everest 710GA headphones (RRP $249.95) to the Australian market, after announcing them back at IFA 2018.

Smart assistants are working their way into most of our devices and the latest integration: headphones.

In addition to the headphones, in the box, you’ll find a MicroUSB charging cable, an aux cable, and a sturdy hard case, perfect for travelling with the headphones.

Although the integration with Google Assistant is a nice twist not seen in JBL, are they worth the higher than mid-range price?

DESIGN

JBL did not stray too far from the standard design of their other headphones with the Everest 710GA models.

The 710 GAs come in two colours, light grey with silver accent strips or dark grey with bronze accent strips, I reviewed the latter.

The colour choice stands out from the stock standard grey or black headphones on the market, the design of these headphones is sleek and understated.

The headphones feature minimal branding with the JBL logo on the sides of the earcups and “Everest” on the Bronze strips.

The Everest headphones are solid and durable made of mostly plastic with premium leatherette covered plush padded ear cups and headband

If you are always putting your headphones on incorrectly, inside the ear cups, you’ll find a large “L” and “R” so you won’t have that issue again.

The headphones are comfortable to wear for long periods with cushioned headband and earcups. And even with their over-ear design they are not bulky but are lightweight.

The Everest headphones come with a handy carry bag and the headphones themselves can be folded up for easy transport and storage.

The right earcup is where most of the controls are found.

There is an on/off switch, pairing happens instantaneously and it can be paired with multiple devices at once.

The controls also feature volume controls, play/pause/answer calls, a Bluetooth button, and a ShareMe button.

The ShareMe 2.0 allows the headphones to pair with other Bluetooth headphones to share audio — ideal for watching a video from one tablet or smartphone while travelling and not having to share earphones.

I found the control buttons were placed awkwardly on the earcup and very close together. Often I accidentally clicked the sharing button which was annoying. After getting to know where the buttons it was easier to manage.

The right earcup also houses the aux port if you need to plug in the headphones.

The audio cable doesn’t feature the industry standard 90-degree angle. It is curved slightly, which I honestly didn’t like the look of, but can see how it would potentially prolong the life of the cable.

The left earcup also houses one of the biggest draws for this product: Google Assistant.

Once the device is connected via Bluetooth or cable to the headphones, in order to activate Google Assistant, you don’t need to say “OK, Google” or “Hey, Google” all you need to do is tap or swipe the left earcup and Google will listen to your command and answer your question into your ear and present the information on your device.

The left earcup is where the MicroUSB charging port resides.

PERFORMANCE

Google Assistant worked perfectly on these headphones, better than my recent experience with Polk Smart Assist.

I could get Google Assistant to call my partner easily without lifting a finger. Answers to commands (weather etc.) were clear.

The microphone features echo cancelling and it held up even on a particularly windy day in North Sydney.

I found the audio fidelity was fantastic, not surprising from a JBL headphone with 40mm drivers.

The highs are crisp and clear while the lows are feature a nice bass, not as powerful as some other JBL headphones on the market but the sound provided by these headphones is rich with clarity on the high ends, plus clear and precise high-mids.

Although not specifically stated as noise-cancelling, they do offer some passive noise-cancelling and while some outside noise is let in, it’s not extensive.

The battery life was good, I used the headphones on my commute to and from work and then to and from the gym all week without needed to charge.

Before they run out you do get a voice prompt to charge and they charge quickly via Micro USB so it was easy to have it charging while I was working at a PC.

JBL claims a battery life of up to 25 hours, which might be pushing it to its limit, but it lasted me nearly a week of commuting before I absolutely needed a recharge — that was with audio only.

VALUE

When it comes to wireless headphones, battery life, comfort, and audio quality are forefront on my mind.

These headphones performed well and were exceptionally comfortable and the addition of Google Assitant was a nifty feature that was handy for getting information without heaving to dig my phone out of my bag.

The Everest 710GA could benefit from a noise-cancelling feature and potentially a button placement redesign.

However, the JBL Everest 710GA headphones are a great option for those that travel often or are looking for wireless headphones for their commute that sound great and feature a smart twist.